Helpless' Aftermath
by bluerose3
Summary: What happened between Buffy and Giles after Giles was fired in the episode Helpless.


Short addition to the episode "Helpless"  
  
Rated G  
  
B/G beginnings implied  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------ "If you touch me, I'll kill you."  
  
"Whatever I have to do to deal with Kralik... and to win back your trust... "  
  
"She passed - You didn't"  
  
Her head was spinning not so much from the cut on her forhead but rather from the events of the past 24 hours. The vampire was dead, her mom was saved... and she passed the council's test. But the costs were unimaginable. Losing Giles in more ways than one. The council wanted to take him away from her, but hadn't she already lost him when he betrayed her? Poisoned her. Reaching out to pick up the wet washcloth to try to sooth her head wound even if it could do nothing to calm the inner tormoil, she found her hand touching his. Through unshed tears she watched as he gently wiped her forehead. He looked as lost as she felt.  
  
"Giles..."  
  
"Yes?" He had meant it to come out as sounding strong an 'all things will be all right', normal reassuringly calm reply. It rather came out as a strained whisper. He was fighting back tears as well. My god how will she ever trust me again? I did this to her. Weakened her, allowed them to torment and almost kill Buffy. How can she stand to look at me.  
  
He was not looking at her and she needed him to look at her. Needed to see his eyes and try to figure out what if anything was left of the bond they shared before this mess started. When he was Her Watcher and she was His Slayer and nothing dare come between them. She waited in silence till he had finished cleaning her forhead and now had nothing to busy himself with and no where to look but into her eyes. Pain and uncertainty was mirrored there in her face when he did finally bring himself to glance down into her eyes.  
  
Realizing all of a sudden that he was intimately close and figuring she wanted some space from him. He awkwardly lowered his head and started to back away to the other side of the room.  
  
"Don't." The one word plea was urgently whispered. He stopped and looked again at her. Silently asking what she wanted him to do... whatever she wanted he would do .... he would do... anything to be trusted by her again. "Don't go away, please?" She finished.  
  
"I won't... not unless or until you choose for me to go." He assured her softly as he leaned back towards her.  
  
She started to cry ... a few stray tears at first then harder and harder till she was comsumed by the sobbing. He simply held her and let her cry. Thoughts of cold blooded murder for reducing his slayer to this ran through Giles's mind. 'Kralik, so help me you will pay for this.' Only thing saving the council leader's life at the moment is she needed him more than he needed revenge.  
  
After several long minutes she pulled back a little to wipe the tears from her face. "What happens now? "  
  
"Nothing changes. I will remain at your side for as long as you need me... they will send another watcher in time. Someone to take my place." The thought of someone else filling that role in her life tore through him in waves of pain.  
  
"No one will take your place. I don't care who they send. The bastards can decide whatever they want, but that doesn't mean I have to do what they say." She sounded like a typical rebellious teenager with that statement, but he knew there was nothing typical about her. She never had the chance to be concerned with the problems of a normal teenager - what dances to go to with whom, what dresses to wear, if her make up was on right... were innocent delemas reserved for the others. He could never have seen her as a child... only as the remarkable young woman she proved herself to be moment by moment.  
  
"Can you ever forgive me?" His voice betrayed him by showing the tears his eyes withheld.  
  
"I can't lose you. You know that, right? "  
  
"After what I did... "  
  
She cut him off, "Are you going to do it again? " His eyes darted up from staring at the floor to see if she was serious. Her expression was stone faced and unreadable. Seeing how much it hurt him to think she would even for a second consdier him capable of putting her through more pain softened her tone. "Then lets move on."  
  
He silently nodded and sat in exhausted silence as she reached out and hugged him close. They belonged together and no vampire, demon, or council member was ever going to change that.  
  
'If only you knew how wrong Kralik was to describe my love for you as a father's love for a child... ' Giles thought to himself as he savored her arms around him. ' I love you Buffy ' One day he would tell her those words out loud, but for now he waited, watched and loved her.  
  
A Beginning.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Constructive feedback welcome at bluerosemail@yahoo.com 


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